Resurrection cover

Resurrection

Rating 4.1
Word count
319K words
Chapters
134
ISBN
9787532750900

Tags

Summary

Resurrection is one of Leo Tolstoy's (1828–1910) major works, based on a real incident. It centers on the male protagonist Nekhlyudov, who seduces his aunt's maid Maslova, gets her pregnant, and has her cast out of the household. She later becomes a prostitute and is put on trial for a charge of robbery and murder. Serving on the jury, Nekhlyudov sees the woman he once seduced and is overcome with remorse. He works to clear her name and asks to marry her in order to atone for his sin. After their appeal fails, he follows her into Siberian exile. His conduct moves her and reawakens her love for him. But to protect his reputation and position, she ultimately does not marry him, instead marrying a revolutionary.

Editor's review

Resurrection is the intellectual and artistic culmination of Tolstoy's late period. This novel goes beyond the grand epic scale of War and Peace and differs from the deep examination of family ethics in Anna Karenina; instead it directs its gaze straight at the legal, political, religious, and moral foundations of Tsarist Russian society, subjecting them to a ruthless interrogation. The story begins when the young aristocrat Nekhlyudov, sitting on the jury, recognizes in the prostitute Maslova, accused of murder, the very maid Katyusha whom he once seduced and abandoned. This moment of "recognition" is not merely the revival of a personal memory but the awakening of conscience of an entire guilty class. Nekhlyudov's journey to follow Maslova into Siberian exile in atonement forms the novel's main thread and also acts as a moving prism, refracting a panoramic social picture from countryside to city, from courtroom to prison, from bureaucrats to revolutionaries. The breadth and force of its critique are rarely matched in Russian literature.

As the literary vehicle for Tolstoy's late worldview, Resurrection is filled with moral exhortation and philosophical reflection, and the characters sometimes seem more like spokesmen for certain ideas. This is both its strength—the fervent longing for the soul's "resurrection" is deeply infectious—and a source of some artistic loss. But undeniably, Nekhlyudov's inner struggle and self-examination reach the height of psychological realism. This edition from Shanghai Translation Publishing House offers a fluent and precise translation that conveys well the original's grave style and intellectual edge. Reading this book is not only to appreciate a literary classic but to confront heavy, enduring questions about guilt, forgiveness, social justice, and spiritual deliverance.

Who it's for

A good fit for

  • Deep readers with a strong interest in Russian literature and social history
  • Readers who wish to ponder philosophical questions of morality, atonement, and spiritual deliverance through literature
  • Readers who appreciate the systematic critique of social institutions in Tolstoy's late works
  • Readers looking for a classic that goes beyond story and delivers a powerful intellectual impact

Not a good fit for

  • Readers expecting a plot-driven, fast-paced love story or adventure
  • Readers impatient with extensive philosophical discussion and moral introspection, who prefer purely narrative works

Reading tips

  1. It can be read in comparison with Tolstoy's earlier and middle-period works to trace the evolution of his thought and artistic style.
  2. There is no need to rush the plot; pause as appropriate to reflect on the questions of social and personal guilt raised in Nekhlyudov's inner monologues.
  3. Some knowledge of late 19th-century Tsarist Russian society, especially conditions after the emancipation of the serfs, will help deepen understanding of the novel's critical targets.

About the publisher

Shanghai Translation Publishing House China · Founded in 1978

Shanghai Translation Publishing House is a Chinese publisher oriented mainly toward translation and publishing. Its publications cover foreign literature, world classics and classic works, as well as social culture, folk literature and classical poetry. The database contains 2,618 titles, including Never Let Me Go, Les Misérables (2 volumes), Don Quixote (illustrated collector's edition), The Complete Comedies of Molière (4 volumes), The Complete Novels of Kafka (3 volumes), The Collected Works of Dostoevsky (9-volume set), Reason and Persons, and Oedipus Rex (Translation Classics). Its author resources include foreign writers such as Kazuo Ishiguro, Victor Hugo, Cervantes and Molière, as well as translators such as Zheng Kelu, Sun Jiameng, Li Jianwu and Zhang Kun. The publisher has brands such as "Translation Classics Selections" and "Translation Documentary," and emphasizes translated works in foreign literature and the humanities and social sciences, while also publishing bilingual dictionaries and foreign-language educational books. Public information is limited; the above is based on the book information in the database.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 译本序
  3. 第一部
  4. 一
  5. 二
  6. 三
  7. 四
  8. 五
  9. 六
  10. 七
  11. 八
  12. 九
  13. 十
  14. 十一
  15. 十二
  16. 十三
  17. 十四
  18. 十五
  19. 十六
  20. 十七
  21. 十八
  22. 十九
  23. 二十
  24. 二十一
  25. 二十二
  26. 二十三
  27. 二十四
  28. 二十五
  29. 二十六
  30. 二十七
  31. 二十八
  32. 二十九
  33. 三十
  34. 三十一
  35. 三十二
  36. 三十三
  37. 三十四
  38. 三十五
  39. 三十六
  40. 三十七
  41. 三十八
  42. 三十九
  43. 四十
  44. 四十一
  45. 四十二
  46. 四十三
  47. 四十四
  48. 四十五
  49. 四十六
  50. 四十七
  51. 四十八
  52. 四十九
  53. 五十
  54. 五十一
  55. 五十二
  56. 五十三
  57. 五十四
  58. 五十五
  59. 五十六
  60. 五十七
  61. 五十八
  62. 五十九
  63. 第二部
  64. 一
  65. 二
  66. 三
  67. 四
  68. 五
  69. 六
  70. 七
  71. 八
  72. 九
  73. 十
  74. 十一
  75. 十二
  76. 十三
  77. 十四
  78. 十五
  79. 十六
  80. 十七
  81. 十八
  82. 十九
  83. 二十
  84. 二十一
  85. 二十二
  86. 二十三
  87. 二十四
  88. 二十五
  89. 二十六
  90. 二十七
  91. 二十八
  92. 二十九
  93. 三十
  94. 三十一
  95. 三十二
  96. 三十三
  97. 三十四
  98. 三十五
  99. 三十六
  100. 三十七
  101. 三十八
  102. 三十九
  103. 四十
  104. 四十一
  105. 四十二
  106. 第三部
  107. 一
  108. 二
  109. 三
  110. 四
  111. 五
  112. 六
  113. 七
  114. 八
  115. 九
  116. 十
  117. 十一
  118. 十二
  119. 十三
  120. 十四
  121. 十五
  122. 十六
  123. 十七
  124. 十八
  125. 十九
  126. 二十
  127. 二十一
  128. 二十二
  129. 二十三
  130. 二十四
  131. 二十五
  132. 二十六
  133. 二十七
  134. 二十八

FAQ

What is the main story of Resurrection?
The novel tells of the young aristocrat Nekhlyudov, who in court recognizes the prostitute Maslova, accused of murder, as Katyusha, the girl he once seduced and abandoned. Overcome with guilt, he resolves to clear her name and atone by marrying her. As he follows Maslova to her Siberian place of exile, he comes into broad contact with every level of society and deeply recognizes the hypocrisy and injustice of the entire aristocratic class and social system, ultimately achieving a "resurrection" in spirit and morality.
What is this novel's place in Tolstoy's career?
This is a novel Tolstoy completed over ten years (1889–1899). It is his most important late-career masterpiece and is regarded as a summation of his lifelong intellectual and artistic exploration. It concentrates Tolstoyism—moral self-perfection, non-resistance to evil by force, universal love and forgiveness—and artistically leans more toward the expression of ideas and moral exhortation, while the force of its critical realism reaches its peak.
Why is Resurrection said to have strong social criticism?
Through the plot of Nekhlyudov traveling everywhere to appeal for Maslova, the novel reads like a social investigation, layer by layer exposing the hypocrisy and incompetence of the Tsarist legal system, the darkness and corruption of prison administration, the coldness and heartlessness of the bureaucracy, the parasitic life of the landed nobility, and the deceitfulness of the official church. It offers a comprehensive and profound critique of the entire state apparatus and social system.

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About the author

Leo Tolstoy Author · Russian · 1828–1910

Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy (1828–1910) was a Russian writer of critical realism and a thinker. Born into the nobility, he is widely recognized as one of the world's greatest novelists. His representative works include War and Peace, Anna Karenina, and Resurrection. His writing is known for its broad social vision, delicate psychological portrayal, and profound moral inquiry, and is often classified under foreign literature, world classics, and classic works. This site holds 62 of his works, including the above novels and several English editions. In his later years Tolstoy left home and died at a railway station. Public information is limited, so biographical details cannot be fully described, yet his literary achievement and intellectual influence remain enduring.

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